Nordic health tech company, Kara Connect, today announced it will locate its operations in Ireland, with plans to create up to 100 new roles. The announcement follows a recent Series A fundraising of €6 million led by Kvika Asset Management.
It also announced Kerry businessman John McElligott, who has been a board member of Kara Connect since 2020, as Chief Operating Officer and Head of Ireland for Kara Connect, with responsibility for leading its European expansion from Ireland.
Kara Connect is a health and well-being platform which connects employees with coaches, counsellors, and therapists. It provides organisations with a suite of solutions enabling employees to access services which are tailored to their individual well-being requirements.
The company has begun recruiting and is creating roles in sales, marketing, client service and finance to initially target the UK & Ireland markets, followed by continental Europe. It has already signed up and onboarded health and well-being practitioners including nutritionists, psychologists, life & career coaches, and financial counsellors, amongst others to provide services to employees on dedicated private company platforms.
John McElligott, COO of Kara Connect said, “More and more organisations recognise the health and well-being of their workforce as a major priority in employee recruitment, engagement, and retention. At the same time, employees now look to their employers for access to coaching, counselling, and therapy. These trends have accelerated through the pandemic and these services are becoming the recognised standard for corporate well-being throughout Europe and beyond.”
Thorbjorg Helga Vigfusdottir, CEO of Kara Connect said, “Dublin is recognised around the world as a location for top talent and as a global tech hub, making it the ideal location for us to establish our European sales and marketing hub. Ireland will form our operational base to expand into the UK and beyond over the coming years.”
John transitions to Kara Connect from Interflora/ MyFlower where he will now join the board. He also serves as a board member of Gustazos and Clear Global and is an active business mentor.
